A St. Mary’s County seafood business and a Charles County farm are among 37 Maryland operations sharing nearly $3.6 million in state grants to build cold storage and refrigerated delivery for locally grown and harvested food.
The Maryland Department of Agriculture announced the awards Oct. 13 under its Postharvest Infrastructure Grant Program. The money is meant to help farms, watermen and food businesses in rural counties keep products cold from harvest to market, food banks and community partners.
Two Southern Maryland recipients were among the projects the department highlighted:
- James Morris Seafood & Supplies, St. Mary’s County: will build a cold storage supply chain to bring fresh seafood to rural communities.
- Shlagel Farms, Charles County: will buy a refrigerated truck with a lift gate to carry fresh products from the farm to community partners across rural Southern Maryland.
The department did not list individual award amounts in its announcement. Recipients are spread across 16 rural counties.
Federal rural health money
The grants are paid for by the federally funded Maryland Rural Health Transformation Program. The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services awarded the Maryland Department of Health $168.2 million for the program’s first budget period. Health Secretary Dr. Meena Seshamani said access to nutritious food is a key part of community health.
“These grants will create stronger markets for our farmers and watermen, while ensuring consumers have reliable access to nutritious and locally-produced food,” Agriculture Secretary Kevin Atticks said.
The program grew after it launched. When the department opened applications in May, it announced $1.6 million in funding, with a $30,000 minimum per grant and no matching requirement. Applications closed June 14.
What the money buys
Across the state, funded projects include coolers and freezers, cooling equipment for existing delivery vehicles, inventory tracking systems, loading dock upgrades and food safety improvements. Other highlighted recipients include farms in Carroll, Washington, Frederick, Wicomico and Worcester counties, buying everything from walk-in coolers to a refrigerated trailer for meat.
The full list of awardees is posted on the department’s program website.
